Founded in 1888, James Hardie Industries is one of Australia's oldest, richest and proudest corporations. And its fortunes were based on what proved to be one of the worst industrial poisons of the twentieth century: asbestos. Asbestos House, the name of the grand headquarters that Hardie built itself in 1929, tells two remarkable tales. It relates the frantic financial engineering in 2001 during which Hardie cut adrift its liabilities to sufferers of asbestos-related disease, the public and political odium that followed, and the extraordinary deal that resulted. It is also the story of how the company, forgot how, even as fibro built a nation, the asbestos fibre from which it was made condemned thousands to death. Reconstructed from hundreds of hours of interviews and thousands of pages of documentation, Asbestos House is a saga of high finance, industrial history, legal intrigue, medical breakthrough and human frailty.

As an immediately useful ready-for adaption model, this manual is a valuable tool for contractors and subcontractors in the construction industry implementing the overwhelming OSHA requirements. Successfully utilized in the field, the Manual can be customized to accomodate all areas of construction.

Construction Safety and Loss Control Program Manual:
-- is topically organized for easy access to essential information;
-- provides interpretations of the generic OSHA requirements specifically suited to the construction industry;
-- offers checklists, summaries, and step-by-step directions for implementation of the requirements.

Liability for every construction company, no matter how large or small, is enormous. The Manual, packed with valuable, applicable, and useable information, is just the tool necessary to minimize a company's liability and improve safety programs and employee awareness.

The building sector exerts huge pressure on the built and natural environment and despite significant efforts to minimise the consequences, the International Energy Agency submitted that, by 2050, emissions related to buildings could double. However, in the building sector, significant improvement in energy use and reduction in greenhouse gas emissions can be achieved, given the potential to do this at no cost, using new technology. Since most buildings that exist now will still exist in 2050, the greatest energy savings can be made through refurbishment. In the future, legislation on carbon usage, as well as innovative technologies and knowledge, will trigger aggressive emission reductions in buildings, and this will compel installers of retrofit options to consider embodied emissions in order to achieve the best-value retrofit plan.This book, in response to the growing environmental importance of retrofit options, describes the development of a powerful decision support system, detailing both theoretical and practical insights, for the evaluation of environmentally and economically optimal retrofit options for non-domestic buildings. The chapters within it discuss engineering, energy, environment and economics in the context of climate change and sustainability, while a methodological framework of a decision support system is used to analyse a range of building energy retrofit options. The theoretical developments provided in this book can be transferred to other industries beyond the built environment and will be useful to researchers, energy systems engineers, architects, building energy managers, supply chain and procurement managers, sustainability managers and policy makers.

Set out along the "RIBA Plan of Work", this work helps designers to understand the practical implications of the legislation, highlighting particular problem areas and offering pointers about how they may be resolved. Noise is a matter of critical concern at every stage of construction projects and is controlled through a broad array of Acts, regulations and standards. Designers are increasingly required to minimise its negative impacts on communities and individuals - be they workers, occupants or neighbours - and failure to do so can disrupt project programmes, increase costs and prejudice building use and client operations. Set out along the "RIBA Plan of Work" and written by a highly respected architect and acoustician, "Legislation Maze: Noise" will help designers to understand the practical implications of the legislation, highlighting particular problem areas and offering pointers about how they may be resolved. Directly relevant legislation such as the Control of Noise at Work Regulations 2006, the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2007 and Part E of the Building Regulations are covered along with less directly relevant ones such as Environmental Protection Act 1990, and together they offer a handy first point of reference for the busy practitioner. The book is part of the "Legislation Maze" series which comprises short, easy-to-use topic-based guides for construction professionals and students in construction-related fields. It focuses on aspects of design and job management controlled by legislation, regulations and codes where these are otherwise difficult and time-consuming to assimilate.

Jack Russell, well known for his 'contractual terrier' column in the Electrical Times, shares a lifetime's experience of the construction industry, with a style and insight that speaks directly to electrical and mechanical subcontractors. Thousands of subbies have already benefitted from these insights: the streetwise approach to claims avoidance through the implementation and maintenance of basic routines on site, and clear paperwork including the contract and the programme of works. Instead of writing another daunting handbook, Jack Russell's insights are captured in brief, crisp, humorous articles, complemented by a series of cartoons. The text is supported by forms and checklists that have already made it onto site cabin walls around the country. The third edition features new chapters, including coverage of the New Engineering Contract (NEC3) and several new checklists.

In force since April 2007, the new CDM Regulations impose new responsibilities and requirements on architects and all parties to construction work.This reference tool for the new role of CDM Co-ordinator is written by the Association for Project Safety (APS), whose extensive experience in the field and insider's knowledge of the new CDM Regulations will prove invaluable to any practice offering CDM-C services. It is arranged so that basic services and procedures can be quickly reviewed and related to the normal flow of the CDM Co-ordinator's activities on a traditional procurement route.Published in a ring binder and supplied with a fully-searchable electronic version on CD-ROM, the guide covers: competence, resources and capability; advising and assisting the client - to manage the project, on appointments, on notifying the HSE, on the competence, resources and capability of others, to provide information, and, on the start of construction; co-ordinating the planning and preparations for project construction work; working with 'designers' on risk reduction and health and safety management; advising on the suitability and compatibility of designs; dealing with design work during construction; and, delivering a suitable Health and Safety File. Each section details what needs to be done under the headings: 'How to do it'; 'Additional guidance'; 'When other approaches are needed'; and 'When things are going wrong'.

From prehistoric times until late in the twentieth century iron was vital to the livelihood of those who lived and worked in the Forest of Dean. From Roman times onwards iron from the Forest was also vital to the national economy. This is the story of the Forest's iron industry.

This report discusses the benefits and costs of partnering and deals with the specifics of the two main types of partnering - project partnering and strategic partnering. It provides practical advice and guidance on how you can apply partnering to your organisation and details the contractual and legal issues.

China is now one of the world's largest building materials producers with annual output of cement, plate glass, construction ceramics and sanitary ceramics ranking first in the world. The building materials industry has been one of the pillar industries in China's economy. It is also a significant component of the construction industry, accounting for about 15 per cent of the construction industry's industrial added value. Driven by a bullish real estate market in 2003, all sectors of China's building materials industry have recorded profits. The total industrial added value amounted to RMB 143.5 billion (USD 17.35 billion), representing an impressive annual growth rate of 26.5 per cent, the highest in the recent 10 years. It is forecasted that such a growth pace will be maintained in 2004. Cement manufacturing is the largest sector in China's building materials industry. Among China's top 100 building materials companies in 2003, 59 were cement manufacturers. This is 1.2 per cent of the total 4, 813 cement firms nationwide.

Across the nation, construction projects large and small - from hospitals to schools to simple home improvements - are spiraling out of control. Delays and cost overruns have come to seem normal, even as they drain our wallets and send our blood pressure sky-rocketing. In "Broken Buildings, Busted Budgets", prominent construction attorney Barry B. LePatner builds a powerful case for change in America's sole remaining 'mom and pop' industry - an industry that consumes $1.23 trillion and wastes at least $120 billion each year.With three decades of experience representing clients that include eminent architects and engineers, as well as corporations, institutions, and developers, LePatner has firsthand knowledge of the bad management, ineffective supervision, and insufficient investment in technology that plagues the risk-averse construction industry. In an engaging and direct style, he here pinpoints the issues that underlie the industry's woes while providing practical tips for anyone in the business of building, including advice on the precise language owners should use during contract negotiations.Armed with "Broken Buildings, Busted Budgets", everyone involved in the purchase or renovation of a building or any structure - from homeowners seeking to remodel to civic developers embarking on large-scale projects - has the information they need to change this antiquated industry, one project at a time.

By applying their abundant natural resources to ironmaking early in the eighteenth century, Americans soon made themselves felt in world markets. After the Revolution, ironmakers supplied the materials necessary to the building of American industry, pushing the fuel efficiency and productivity of their furnaces far ahead of their European rivals.

In American Iron, 1607-1900, Robert B. Gordon draws on recent archaeological findings as well as archival research to present an ambitious, comprehensive survey of iron technology in America from the colonial period to the industry's demise at about the turn of the twentieth century. Closely examining the techniques -- the "hows" -- of ironmaking in its various forms, Gordon offers new interpretations of labor, innovation, and product quality in ironmaking, along with references to the industry's environmental consequences. He establishes the high level of skills required to ensure efficient and safe operation of furnaces and to improve the quality of iron product. By mastering founding, fining, puddling, or bloom smelting, ironworkers gained a degree of control over their lives not easily attained by others.

Written by a Master Mason with over 40 years of professional masonry and construction experience, this all-new edition of today's best-selling guide to understanding and learning how to do masonry work is approved by The Brick Industry of America! Extraordinarily complete, the author draws upon more than 25 years as an instructor to provide users with a reader-friendly, comprehensive guide to basic information and advanced skills- from materials, bonds, brick, and concrete block, through advanced work such as building fireplaces, arches, and more! All technical and safety information has been thoroughly updated to reflect current industry practices and federally mandated guidelines. An all-new unit on glass block masonry developed in conjunction with Pittsburgh Corning Company, the leading manufacturer of glass block in the United States, has also been added to this edition to equip masonry students and professionals with the expertise they need to respond to rising demands for this material in home and commercial applications. In addition to featuring a wealth of helpful illustrations, all projects have been field-tested in masonry shops to guarantee their usefulness in developing the competencies required of today's professionals.